Buckley fills out coaching staff
Devin Higgins
Issue date: 1/21/10 Section: Sports
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He now has a staff to fill the office in the heart of the Pacific Athletic Center.
"I can't wait for them all to be here at once so we can get to work," Buckley said. "It's been a long, lonely fall in the football office."
Though he announced the hiring of former Forest Grove High School coach Mike McCabe as offensive assistant late last year, Buckley quickly hired Jim Craft as offensive coordinator on January 6, and Josh Fetter as defensive coordinator, on January 15.
Both men join Pacific after long stints with the Portland St. Vikings, a Division I-FCS school in the Big Sky Conference.
Buckley explained his delay in assembling his coaching staff in waiting for the past season to be over in order to contact and receive credentials from potential hires.
Craft, 33, ran the offense for PSU under Jerry Glanville during his final season in 2009. Using a hybrid of the "West Coast Offense", a system that relies on short, accurate passes balanced with a strong rushing attack, and the "Run 'n Shoot", emphasizing multiple receivers and a high-yardage passing game, Craft had some success with the Vikings last year.
Portland St. quarterback Drew Hubel threw for nearly 2000 yards and 9 touchdowns, while the team ran for over 1100 yards and 8 touchdowns using Craft's system last season.
"I've known Jim for about seven or eight years now, and played against him several times." Buckley said, "His system is very thorough and can attack defenses in many different ways."
When asked why he'd choose someone with an approach to offense that's not in keeping with the current trends of the "Spread" or "Wildcat", that dominate D-I college football, Buckley was quick to point out, "At this level, we'll see a lot of classic styles. Lewis & Clark have run the Fly for years now, while Linfield has their tried and true offense. At the D-III level, it's not always worth keeping up with the Joneses."
Being a defensive-minded coach, it was also imperative for Buckley to find one that shared his philosophy. He believes he found that man in Fetter.
"We're both attack-oriented guys who like to run at a fast-pace." He said, "That allows us to utilize both zones and blitzes."
While he looks at the offense as an opportunity to use different match-ups and personnel sets, Buckley said he also sees the need for simplicity with the defense.
"It'll be key, early on. Of course, you need to be flexible and not be set in one style of defense or you'll get burned. But we don't need to be complex on both sides of the ball to succeed."
Filling the full-time coaching staff is Ian Falconer, offensive line coach and recruiting coordinator. Falconer joins Pacific from NWC rival Lewis & Clark, where he was both line coach and offensive coordinator from 2006 to 2009.
He also rejoins Craft, whom he played under at Portland St., earning All Big-Sky Conference honors as a center.
Jacob Yoro, linebackers coach, and Aaron Cloud, who will handle the defensive secondary, round out the staff as part-time assistants.
According to Buckley, each man brings his own expertise, and better yet, their own sphere of influence on the west coast, an essential component of recruiting.
"Jacob Yoro's a Hawai'i native and coaches at St. Louis High School." Buckley said, "Ian's coached for Lewis & Clark, While Aaron is from Albany and coached at Whitworth and the University of Laverne. So these guys, along with Jim (Washington and Idaho) and Josh (Southern Oregon), have knowledge of the entire west coast and the Northwest Conference."
The concept, Buckley added, was to build a staff that could get to prospects all over the western mainland and the islands.
"This way, I can just let them go use their own networks to bring in the player we'll need," he said.
The need for coaches who could hit the ground running during the critical recruiting months also made it easier for Buckley separate likely candidates.
"I got applications from all over the country, particularly from the Southeast and Midwest. The only problem was they'd be coming into a totally new area, and while they might increase the chances of getting talent from those part of the country, we knew we needed to focus on this side of the country," he said.
Above all, though, Buckley wanted coaches that would blend into his philosophy of character and integrity over simple wins and losses. Pacific athletic director, Ken Schumann, couldn't be happier with the group Buckley's assembled.
"We have a great group of coaches, who are enthusiastic and excited about building a program that fits well with what this university represents." Schumann said, "They're working very hard on getting athletes who will succeed in the classroom and on the field."
"Whoever I brought onboard had to be a good guy. That's what I wanted, good husbands, good fathers, and good coaches." Buckley said. "They had to be willing to look at Pacific as a school first, and understand that we're bringing in students to this university. That means they have to meet the academic standards, and so the coaches will have to work along with the admissions department. And the department's done a great job so far."
He added, "The perk these students will have is that while they attend Pacific, they'll be able to play football."
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